Summer hues and Autumn blues
by Adstradea
Summary: A Oneshot dealing with the CPU's, and how they spent their Summer. Neptune has a plan, and she'll have the other CPU's join in on it! Join her in where her on the spot thinking will get her and the others! Filled with friendshippy moments.


**Hey, hey, hey, it's the Summer Oneshot! **

**I hope you all enjoy this. I had fun writing it, and I hope it shows.**

**More stuff at the bottom. You know, Authors Notes and stuff.**

**Anyway…**

**Onto the story!**

* * *

**Summer hues and Autumn blues:**

"Hey, Histy?"

"Yes, Neptune?"

"Does Gamindustri even HAVE a proper calendar system?"

High up in Planeptower, Neptune was lazing about. She was sprawled out on a couch, minding her own (very important) business.

And currently, that business was asking very important questions.

"Like, have we ever gotten any kinda date or month that was specified in the games?"

Histoire, who was looking out at the city, looked over her shoulder towards Neptune. She had a very questioning look on her face.

"Neptune, you should already know the answer to that."

Neptune rolled her eyes at Histoire.

"I knooow, but there's never really been a big "THIS is the date!" kinda thing. Sure, we know that months have passed when… well, when months have passed, but never a super big announcement, ya know?"

Histoire shifted her book to fully face Neptune, and was floating towards her couch.

"I fail to see how this is relevant to whatever it is that you are doing. Which is what, exactly?", asked Histoire, crossing her arms and brandishing a slightly annoyed face.

Neptune sat up, cross legged, and faced Histoire.

"So basically, it's Summer, right-o?"

"Approaching the end of Summer, yes. Why?"

Neptune was rocking from side to side on the couch. Histoire was still looking at her, and raised an eyebrow at Neptune's silence.

"Neptune, why do you wan-"

As Histoire started speaking, Neptune suddenly lost her balance. She was flailing her arms around quickly, trying to regain her balance and grab onto something. She wasn't successful, and crashed down onto the floor.

There was a sudden sound of a door opening, and Nepgear could be seen poking her body through the doorway of her room.

"H-Histoire? Is everything alright?"

Histoire sighed aloud, and looked at Nepgear with a disappointed face.

"Yes, Nepgear. It was just Neptune being her regular, silly self."

Nepgear stood on the tippiest of her toes, and spotted Neptune sitting on the floor in a slightly disheveled state.

"Neptune? A-Are you alright, sis?"

Neptune, rubbing her backside, looked at Nepgear with a silly face.

"Yup! Just practicing my emergency landing!"

Nepgear walked over to the couch, with her hands to her chest, while Histoire could only facepalm.

While Nepgear took her seat on the same couch as Histoire, the fairy started talking.

"Can you tell me what your questions were building up to already, preferably without any further unnecessary commotion?"

Neptune jumped up from the floor, and stretched her limbs.

"I wanna go to the other nations, and get all the other Goddesses!", proclaimed Neptune.

Histoire, taken aback by this statement of grand proportions, blinked a few times at Neptune.

"Neptune, why would you want to do that? They are all probably busy with work or other official business. Things that you fail to realize the importance of.", said Histoire, taking an admonishing tone towards the end.

Neptune waved her hands at Histoire, waving away the last part. "As if that's ever stopped me before! They're gonna join me whether they like it or not."

Histoire adopted a suspicious glare.

"And I'm sure that this isn't another attempt to ignore work, yes?", said Histoire, sarcastically.

"I have no idea WHAT you're talking about! I always do my work! Right, Nepgear?"

Nepgear looked at anywhere and everywhere besides Neptune.

"Right, kid sis o' mine?", pleaded Neptune.

"S-Sorry, Neptune… You aren't the most committed person, when it comes to work…", stated Negear, in a gentle voice.

Neptune's face didn't change, and neither did her stance. She was, however, rocking backwards and forwards while retaining her frozen position. It reminded Nepgear of a mannequin.

Neptune suddenly started to fall backwards, still keeping her pose.

"Not again…"

"Sis!"

As Neptune approached the midpoint of her arc, she started to glow. She also started to float above the floor, and safely readjusted herself.

In Neptune's place stood Purple Heart.

She looked at Histoire with cool, calm eyes, and spoke with a serious, composed voice.

"Histoire, I am not doing this to shirk my workload. I am aware of it, do not worry. Believe me, my journey to the other nations does come with reason."

Histoire was caught off guard by the sudden transformation, and by the confident statement.

She blinked at Purple Heart a few times, and finally spoke.

"I suppose that you really mean that, since you're telling me like this. I just wish that you could adopt this attitude in your base form."

Nepgear could only look at her sister with an inquisitive face.

"Sis…"

Purple Heart turned her face towards Nepgear, and smiled gently at her.

"Do not worry, Nep Jr. I shall tell you on the way. You're coming with me, after all."

"O-Okay, sis."

Purple Heart looked back at Histoire, returning to her serious expression.

"Do I have permission, Histoire?"

"…Yes. You do."

"Thank you, Histoire.", said Purple Heart, as she nodded her head.

She returned to her base form, and was immediately questioned by Histoire.

"So where are you going first, Neptune?"

"I've actually already thought of how to decide that!", she stated.

"You? Planning ahead? Colour me shocked.", said Histoire.

"P-Please, have more faith, Histoire…", asked Nepgear.

Neptune took a deep breath in, and a deep breath out, readying herself for an explanation.

"So, I didn't want to take the same route that it always goes like. Lastation, Lowee, then Leanbox, it ALWAYS goes like that. I wanted a little variety, ya know? So I thought of doing it the other way around."

Histoire, with a hand to her chin, nodded at Neptune. "Okay, sounds reasonable."

"BUT, then I thought, why not do it ANOTHER way?"

"Another way, sis? So… Lowee, Leanbox, Lastation?", asked Nepgear.

"Nada! I thought, we can roll on it!"

Nepgear and Histoire looked at Neptune with slightly intrigued faces.

"You mean, the rolling of dice?", asked Histoire.

"Exactamundo!"

"That's… interesting.", stated Nepgear.

"I know, right! Let's go do it."

All three of them moved to the nearby table, and Neptune took a few seconds to get the dice.

"So what are the rules?", asked Histoire.

"So… this is one of those big die, with twenty faces!"

"A D20…", stated Nepgear.

"Yup! And we decide on what nation we go to based off of the number rolled!"

"And which numbers are allocated to which nations?", asked Histoire.

"It goes up, in alphabetical order! Since Lastation, Lowee, and Leanbox all start with L for some reason, we'll use the second letter. So… it'll go like "Lastation, Leanbox, Lowee". Lastation is number one, Leanbox is number two, and Lowee is number three."

"And it repeats itself, in intervals of three, I'm guessing?", spoke Nepgear.

"You know, you're really smart, sis. It goes up to number fifteen."

Histoire looked confused at this. "Why fifteen?"

"Because twenty can't be divided into three whole numbers."

"Then why not eighteen?", suggested Nepgear.

"Because the author likes numbers that end with zero or five. Like, they're "nice numbers", or something. What a weirdo."

Nepgear and Histoire were both confused at this statement, and it showed on their faces.

"So any number after fifteen demands a reroll!"

"O…Okay, Neptune.", spoke Histoire.

"Anywhat, let's get the ball… DIE rolling!"

Neptune pulled out the die. It was purple, with white numbers. She cupped her hands, and rolled the die around in them.

"Believe in the heart of the cards, baby!"

"Don't you mean dice, sis?"

"Nevermind that."

She let it loose.

It rolled around a few times, before landing on the number two.

"To Leanbox we go, first place, aho!"

"Do the rules change on the second roll, Neptune?", asked Histoire.

"Yup! Lastation is odd numbers, and Lowee is even numbers! It goes up to twenty this time."

"Alright then."

She rolled again, in a similar fashion to before.

It landed on the number twenty.

"After one is Lowee, the one before three!"

"And then Lastation…", spoke Nepgear.

"Yup!" Neptune put her fingers to her mouth, and laughed mischievously. "I wonder if Noire'll be jealous… Hehehe."

"You tease that poor girl too much, Neptune.", stated Histoire. "It's a wonder that she hasn't killed you yet."

"As IF she'd ever do something like that. She loves me, after all!"

"I'm so sure.", spoke Histoire, with half-lidded eyes.

"Maybe we should get started then, sis?", suggested Nepgear.

"Yuperooni! We'll be seeing you then, Histy!"

"Goodbye, Histoire."

"Goodbye, you two. Be safe, please."

"Safety is my middle name!"

After that, Neptune and Nepgear both made their way to their balcony overlooking the city, out of earshot from histoire.

"Before we go, sis… I have a question."

"Yeah? Ask away!"

"Did you transform just so that Histoire would take you seriously?"

"U-Uhhhhh… I can neither confirm nor deny that!"

Nepgear let out a little giggle, then spoke. "You're so funny, sis."

"Thanks. Away we go!"

They both transformed, and started flying in the direction of Leanbox.

* * *

**Leanbox Basilicom:**

"And here we are, in the land of the free!", stated Neptune, looking up at the Basilicom entrance. It was a large, mansion like structure, with many white steps leading up to a large wooden door.

There were guards stationed at the bottom of the stairs, on opposite sides of the flight. They looked at Neptune and Nepgear with surprise, then put their right hands to their chest, in a patriotic salute of sorts.

Neptune and Nepgear waved at them heartily, and walked up the stairs. They got to the top of the very large amount of stairs, and encountered another set of guards. They repeated the same salute that the previous set had gone through, and the Planeptune Goddesses greeted them.

Neptune and Nepgear opened the gargantuan doors, and entered. They were greeted by a large hall, with light brown walls, a white floor, and a red carpet leading to a receptionist.

They followed the red carpet, and spoke to the receptionist.

"Greetings, bing. Welcome to Leanbox, bing."

"Wait… I'd recognize that catchphrase anywhere… could it be?!", exclaimed Neptune. "It's Setag! Or is it Ziege? Eh, I'll go with the former."

"You know this lady, sis?"

"Yup! She made, like, one or two appearances. She's helped Vert out with some hacking conundrums in the past."

"Oh…"

"What business do you have here, bing?", asked Setag.

"We're here to see the lady herself! Is she busy?"

"My lady is always busy with something, bing. I am sure that she can make time for you two, bing. I'll inform her that she has two visitors coming to visit her, bing.", said Setag, in a monotone voice.

"Thanks a bunch. Have fun with your… job, I guess.", said Neptune.

"Goodbye.", spoke Negear politely.

The two Goddesses of purple left the receptionist, and walked towards a hallway on their right.

"These halls are so large. There's so many paintings and stuff all over the place.", said Neptune.

"It's really elegant. It suits Vert.", said Nepgear.

"Sure does."

They knew where Vert's room was, and they knew that it was a few hallways away.

It would take a few minutes to get there.

* * *

**Vert's room:**

Vert was relaxing in her room. She was at her desk, reading a book. It was about the adventures of a particular soldier, with his only companion being an AI.

She sighed, and closed the book. She got up, and walked towards a window in her room.

She gazed out at some grassy plains. It was a beautiful day, with only a few clouds in the sky. The sun was shining, as it always did. It was a normal day for Summer Leanbox.

And Summer was coming to its end.

Vert gave this a thought, while leaning on the windowsill.

What had she accomplished, this Summer?

It was the same old, same old stuff for her. She played through her collection of games, and yet again improved the quality of her in-game Guild.

She went to a few conventions that took place during the Summer. Gaming conventions, mostly, but also a few others.

Vert was experimenting with a few hobbies. She would like to have a few more, so she gave it a shot.

She took a page out of Noire's book, and tried cosplaying. It was fun to dress up as her favourite characters. This wasn't really new for Vert, as she'd done it with the other CPU's before, but she went out by herself this time.

She may have spotted a particular black haired CPU on occasion, but decided to not tease the girl.

She tried reading and writing, and visited a few events with new book releases.

When it came to reading, Vert did do this on occasion, but she wasn't an avid reader. She enjoyed it, but she had games to play.

When it came to writing, Vert wasn't so sure. She had met Blanc a few times while visiting a few conventions, and asked her about her hobby. Vert was interested in it, but she just couldn't see herself becoming a writer.

She also thought that if these things became her hobbies, she would be accused of copying the other Goddesses, or some other silly accusations.

The remainder of the time was mostly spent performing Goddess duties. Completing quests, doing paperwork, and overall just working for her people.

As is a Goddesses duty. That is what they lived for, and that is what granted them power.

For beings such as them, who have lived for who knows how long, there weren't many new things to do.

Maybe she would take advantage of the Summer sun, and take a walk on the beach? Perhaps she would lay down in the sun to tan for a bit?

Just a peaceful escape from the regular process.

As Vert thought this, and returned to her normal posture, there was the sound of a door opening. Vert turned around to face it, and spotted Neptune's head jutting through the gap of the door.

Neptune darted her eyes around, and spotted Vert, who was giving her a quizzical, yet happy, look.

"Neptune? Whatever are you doi-", started Vert.

Before Vert could finish, Neptune darted her head back and closed the door. Vert was surprised by this, and brought her left hand to her chest, slightly disheartened. She regained her focus, and could hear Neptune speaking to someone.

"Is Vert inside, sis?", came a familiar voice that Vert was oh so fond of. Nepgear was here too?

"Yeah, yeah, so we gotta enter all special like! Make a grand entry and all that stuff!"

"I don't really see the point, sis, but if you say so."

"Coolio!"

All of a sudden, the door burst open, with Neptune jumping through the doorway. She landed on her knees, and slid for a small distance. She took a pose that reminded Vert of a rock star.

Nepgear, on the other hand, looked through the doorway, and at Vert. She smiled, and entered the room like a normal person.

"Wassuuuup!"

"Hi, Vert."

While Vert was observing her two guests, she had on an amused face. She could not help but giggle lightly.

"Hello, you two. I was not expecting to have guests, but this is indeed a pleasant surprise."

Neptune stood up from her sliding position, and dusted off her knees.

"Hiya, Vert!", greeted Neptune again. "You're coming with us!"

Vert definitely did not expect such a sudden invitation to join them for an outing.

"Neptune! Don't just ask that so suddenly! She might be busy, or already have plans…"

"Do not worry, my sweet Nepgear. I am currently not busy, and I do not have anything planned for later. Whatever it is that you two want me to join you on, I shall gladly accept."

"Ya see, Nep Jr.! Forwardness is the quickest and bestest way to do things!"

"Yeah, but I was expecting a longer conversation…"

"Ah, it is unnecessary, Nepgear. You two are the ones asking me, after all. I will join you."

She gave them both a big smile, and continued talking.

"So… what is it that we are going to do?"

"Well, right now, we're gonna go get the other Goddesses!", answered Neptune.

"We're travelling to Lowee next, to fetch Blanc and the twins.", stated Nepgear.

"Is that so? So I am the first to be asked?", inquired Vert.

"Yeah! The first off the block!"

"That is… very nice to hear."

"We rolled a die to decide where to go first!"

"O-Oh… that is interesting."

"But nevermind that. We're here, and we're square! And now we need to go to Lowee!"

"I have no issue with that. Shall we get going, then?"

"Yup!"

"Yes."

After a few minutes, the three CPU's were outside of the Basilicom. They all transformed, and flew off towards the nation of Lowee.

While they were flying, Green Heart asked a question.

"What are we going to do, once we have everyone?"

"We're going to spend some time together. You'll all see.", answered Purple Heart.

Green Heart looked at Purple Sister Nepgear, who simply shrugged in response.

"Indeed."

* * *

**Lowee Basilicom:**

"Even in Summer, Blanc's nation is snowing, as usual.", stated Vert.

Although this was true, it was lighter snow than usual. It still covered the streets and the tops of the buildings, but it wasn't much of a hindrance.

"I think that this is actually regarded as warm weather, here in Lowee.", spoke Nepgear.

"Maybe we'll see some people walking around in swimming costumes.", said Neptune.

"I don't think the people of Lowee are crazy, Neptune.", spoke Vert.

"Eh, you never know."

They stood in front of the Lowee Basilicom. It was a large, magical looking castle, with pointed towers and large windows. They walked past the standard security, greeting them along the way. They quickly made their way inside the castle, and immediately set off to find Blanc.

"Let's make it snappy, guys! Don't wanna bore the readers with JUST us getting together! We're going to, like, do stuff together and whatever!"

They took a brisk walk down the hallways of the Basilicom, in the direction of Blanc's room. To their luck, they found that Blanc was also walking the halls.

Neptune sped up, and was jogging towards her.

Blanc, looking very sleepy, rubbed her eyes at the sudden movement.

"Neptune, what're-"

Before Blanc could finish, Neptune had grabbed a hold of one of Blanc's oversized sleeves, and started pulling her.

"Hi Blanc! You're-a coming with me!"

Blanc, still in a bit of a daze, tried her best to keep up. She didn't really know what Neptune was on about, but she resigned herself to whatever crazy conundrum they were bound to get into. Blanc figured that it would be easier this way.

"Fine…"

With no complaint, the two were quickly by Nepgear and Vert.

"Hello Blanc.", greeted Nepgear in a friendly manner.

"Hello, Blanc.", greeted Vert, in a similar manner.

"Hel…lo… you two.", mumbled Blanc, in a slow voice. She was thinking that this gathering was definitely more than just Neptune's antics. Or she hoped.

Blanc gave a small stretch, accompanied by a sound of relief.

"Oh? Are you quite tired, Blanc?", questioned Vert.

Blanc wiped her eyes again, and looked to Vert.

"Yeah. I have been staying up late over the past few days. There have been many things to do…", finished Blanc, in a slightly drowsy voice.

"Please, do share…"

"I will later… can we just go outside, so I can wake myself up?"

"Umm… Blanc?", started Nepgear.

"…Yeah?"

"What about… your sisters?"

Blanc's eyes widened in shock, and she immediately put a hand to her face, covering her left eye.

"Yeah… Yeah, we should bring them along. I wouldn't want to leave them alone.", she said, returning to her original position. "They should be out in the courtyard, playing with the snow."

The courtyard was not far away. There was a long table situated in the snow, and there were guards making their rounds.

As Blanc had said, the twins were playing with some snow.

They had both made a few snow sculptures. There was a normal, run of the mill snowman, a small snow castle, and a starfish. In fact, there were four starfish sculptures…

All four CPU's walked onto the snow, making it crunch lightly under their feet. Blanc walked ahead of the group, and spoke to her sisters.

"Rom…Ram…"

Both twins, who had had their hands in the snow, looked up at Blanc. They stood up, and brushed the snow off of their protected hands.

"We're going out now…"

"Oh, yay! I've been SOOO bored. Please tell me that we're going to the beach? Pleeeeeeeaaase?", started Ram.

"We should… play in the water…", suggested Rom.

Blanc looked over her shoulder at Neptune, and then back at her sisters.

"I'm not sure what we're going to do… Neptune hasn't told me anything."

"Well, I'm up for it, whatever it is! I wanna get outta here!", proclaimed Ram.

"Mmmhmm…", nodded Rom.

Blanc smiled at the two of them, her eyes drooping a little bit.

The three Lowee CPU's joined the other CPU's.

Both twins greeted each CPU heartily, each with a hug of their own.

"So I take it we're going to Lastation now?", asked Blanc.

"Yipperoo!", answered Neptune.

"And what are we doing after that?"

"You'll find that out!"

"Do you even know that, yourself?"

"Of course! Kinda. Mostly…"

Blanc sighed, and Vert let out an amused huff.

"Sis… maybe you should've sorted that out beforehand…", spoke Nepgear.

"I have most of it… it'll be fiiiiiine!"

"I hope so…"

Rom and Ram were observing, and their eyes darted between speakers all the while.

"Is it going to be at the beach?", asked Ram, eagerly.

Neptune looked down at Ram, and spoke.

"That's usually how it goes with these stories!"

"Yaaay!"

"Yaaay…", said Rom, quieter than her sister.

"We can go now.", started Blanc. "…Wait. Wait here."

She walked onto the snow, and travelled behind one of the buildings, out of sight.

They could see a flash of light emanating from where Blanc disappeared off to. Had Blanc transformed?

They then heard a few crashes and thuds, along with what sounded like shouts from White Heart.

After the commotion, White Heart came floating back from behind the building, and levitated to the group.

"I feel much better now.", said White Heart, rolling her left shoulder.

The group looked at her suspiciously, and Vert was the one to speak first.

"Blanc, dear…"

"Yeah?", replied White Heart.

"Did you... "exert" yourself behind that building?"

White Heart looked behind her, to the building of note, and back at Vert.

With her usual, slightly angry looking face, she replied.

"Yeah. Figured that smacking the ground a few times would wake me up just fine."

"I thought so…", stated Vert, with upturned eyebrows.

Neptune bent down to the twins level, and whispered to them.

"Pssst… hey? Does Blanc usually do this?"

Both Rom and Ram had slightly surprised faces, and whispered back at Neptune.

"Uhhh…", started Ram.

"Not that we know of…", answered Rom.

'I-Interesting…"

"Oy, Neptune… what're you saying down there?", said White Heart, glaring at Neptune.

Neptune darted up quickly, standing to attention.

"Nothing of note, Blanc! Don't worry about it!"

"Yeah, better be like that."

Neptune nodded her head vigorously, then started to speak.

"Now that we're all… uhhh… ready, we can depart! To pick up our final compatriot! You could say that we're going to the… Last Station!"

Nepgear stood beside her sister, smiling, with upturned eyebrows and closed eyes. Vert smiled, and took a similar face. White Heart rolled her eyes, and the twins both let out a short burst of laughter.

"That's so dumb, Neptune!", stated Ram. "Hahaha, that's so dumb!"

"It was… silly…", spoke Rom, quietly. "Hehehe…"

"You should be laughing for a different reason!"

"Sis, I think we should go now.", said Nepgear.

"Right. Onward!", proclaimed Neptune.

The remaining CPU's transformed and started floating into the air. After a few seconds, they all spun to face Lastation, and flew off at high speed.

* * *

**Lastation Basilicom:**

The group of CPU's had arrived at their destination, and opted to land on Noire's office balcony.

"She's always working, so it should work out. Right?", suggested Purple Heart, just before they landed.

Having transformed back to their base forms, the group decided to enter. To their surprise, Noire was not in the office.

"What?! Noire isn't working?! What is this heresy?!", said Neptune.

"Neptune, she could be out doing guild quests.", spoke Vert.

"That's true. We should ask around. Maybe Uni is still here. Can you lead us to her room, Nepgear?", asked Blanc.

"Yes. It's just down the elevator, and on the left hallway. Shouldn't take long.", answered Nepgear.

They all started heading for the elevator, with the twins running ahead. The door of the elevator was split down the middle, where it would open.

Ram had run to that part, and placed her fingers by the groove, as if she was holding it. Rom readied herself by the button that would call the elevator up.

"Press it, Rom! Pressy pressy!"

"Pressy pressy…"

In a few seconds, the elevator had reached them. As the door opened, Ram acted as if she was the one pulling the doors apart.

"Grrrr! I'm so strong!"

"Yeah…! So strong…"

"Enough fooling around, you two.", said Blanc, as the group caught up to the two little Candidates.

"Aww, but is it not cute, Blanc? Let them enjoy themselves.", spoke Vert.

"As long as they don't cause chaos, sure."

The group entered, and rode the elevator down one floor. They exited, and followed Nepgear down the hallway, where she said Uni's room was. They reached it, and Nepgear knocked on the door and spoke.

"Hello? Uni?"

There was silence for a few seconds, and then a response.

"Nepgear? Is that you?"

"Yes. Can I come in?"

"Yeah."

Nepgear opened the door and entered, while the other CPU's stayed outside. Blanc had a hold of the twin's collars, preventing them from sprinting inside.

"Yes, Nepgear?", inquired Uni, who was standing with her arms crossed.

"Well… First off, hello Uni."

"Y-Yeah, I haven't said that… Hello."

"How are you?"

"Fine. Now, why are you here out of nowhere?"

"…I-Is it bad that I'm here?"

"No, I didn't mean… to sound like that. Sorry."

"Whew…"

"But why are you here?"

"Oh! My sister wants all of us to do something together, so we're here to pick you and your sister up."

"Well I'm up for it, but good luck with Noire."

"Hmmm? What do you mean?"

"She's been in a bad mood recently."

"Oh no, why?"

"I'll tell you on the way. We should find my sister first. She's busy training."

"O-Okay…"

The two left Uni's room, with Uni encountering the other CPU's. They shared greetings, then Uni lead them towards the training room.

"So… can you tell us now?", asked Nepgear.

"Sure. My sister's been in a bad mood lately because she's received some backlash from the people. Some of the decisions that have been made caused the people to speak out about it, and it's not the good kind. The worst part is, they weren't even decisions she made!", explained Uni, in a frustrated manner.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Uni!", piped up Neptune. "Histoire complains about me all the time!"

"Maybe it's for a valid reason, Neptune?", suggested Vert.

"Like the fact that you don't do your job.", added Blanc.

"Ahhh, suffering from success…", said Neptune.

They reached the training room, and entered. It large enough for them to fly around in, and was mostly grey in colour. Right away, they could see Black Heart fighting against what seemed to be simulations of monsters.

And she was really going at it.

"Take that! And THAT!", she shouted, swinging her sword about.

She was fighting against a group of smaller enemies, such as the yellow tulips and horsebirds. She flew around them, slicing them into crystals with precise strikes. She turned to face a horsebird, and rushed towards it at breakneck speed. She placed the blade of her greatsword by its neck, and flew off with it for a few meters, after which she gracefully swung through, with the crystals following the arc of her blade.

Black Heart was done with that group, and had landed near her guests, facing away from them. When she noticed them, she turned her body to face them. She narrowed her eyes and scowled, and willed her weapon to disappear. She walked closer to them, and stopped, her right hand on her hip.

"So? What do you all want?", said Black Heart.

After a silent second, the group devised a plan.

"Neptune, you go talk to her.", whispered Blanc.

"Me?! Why ME?!"

"Because.", finished Blanc.

"You might be the only one able to calm her down.", spoke Vert.

"But she's, like, super Pisty right now. I don't know if I'll get out alive."

Neptune looked at Uni with pleading eyes.

"Hey, I've already tried. Besides, this was your idea."

She turned her vision to Nepgear, who stood by Rom and Ram.

"I-I can't, sis…"

Neptune had no other options. Either she calmed down this Black stallion, or… bad things, she guessed.

She walked forward, showing Black Heart the friendliest face she could.

"H-Hiya, Noire…"

"What, Neptune?"

Neptune gulped.

"How're you doing on this fi-"

"Terribly, thanks for asking.", said Black Heart, sarcastically. She had now shifted her stance, her left arm on her hip.

"Yeah… I heard what happened…"

"And is that what you're here about? I'm not in the mood."

"Uhhh… that's actually not why we're here…"

"Oh, great. That makes me feel SO much better."

"T-That doesn't mean that I'm not worried!"

"Whatever."

Neptune had to figure out what to do, and quick.

"Ah, Nep it, I'll just say it! I want you to have fun with me!"

Black Heart stared at Neptune, and then spoke.

"Does it look like I need it?"

"Fun is a great way to relieve some stress!"

"Hmph. So is fighting."

"T-That may be, but it's better to have fun! Especially when it's with all your friends!"

Black Heart looked away, still holding her annoyed aura.

"Why do you think we're all here?", said Neptune.

"I have better things to do."

"Like what? Deal with some more complaints?"

Black Heart's eyes widened and then narrowed in the space of a split second.

"Like, come oooooon. Uni told me all about it."

Black Heart now looked at her sister, who looked down.

"Did you?"

"Y-Yes…"

Black Heart sighed, and looked back at Neptune.

"And what of it?"

"We all know that it's not your fault. Those decisions weren't even yours, so why worry about what people say about 'em?"

"I worry because it is still my nation. Of course I'd worry about what my own people are saying about my… their nation."

"You got a point, but listen to what I'm sayin'. You ain't at fault here, sista."

"It's not that easy to get over, Neptune."

At least Black Heart had a less annoyed face now. It was almost normal. Almost.

She spoke in a less aggressive voice as well.

"I can't just ignore it…", continued Black Heart.

"I'm not telling you to! I'm asking you to not blame yourself."

"It does partly fall onto me, regardless of who did it."

"Ahhh, you're so stubborn. How do you think you're making Uni feel?"

Both Black Heart and Uni widened their eyes in shock. Black Heart looked at Uni again, and Uni looked between her sister and Neptune.

"Dontcha think she's kinda getting the brunt of it?"

"That's…", started Black Heart, but couldn't continue.

She looked at Uni, who had her eyes to the floor. Her face was slightly red, and her eyes were drooping.

"Uni… Come here."

Uni walked forward, and stopped in front of Black Heart. She raised her head, and looked at the CPU of Lastation.

Black Heart spoke.

"Uni… please tell me. Have I made you feel bad?"

Nobody said anything.

"Please, be honest."

After another pause, Uni spoke.

"A-A bit, Noire… "

"…How?"

"When you would speak to me, s-some of the things you said would… make me feel that way…"

Black Heart looked at her with a worried face, and blinked slowly.

She disengaged her transformation, and placed a hand on Uni's shoulder.

"…I-I'm sorry, Uni. I'll try to be more mindful of what I say to you… A-And how I act around you…"

"…Thank you."

Noire smiled at Uni gently. Uni replied by hugging Noire, at which Noire was surprised, at first. After the initial shock, she embraced her sister.

The rest of the group was both happy and relieved, and they all smiled at the Lastation sisters.

"If only Noire would always resolve her emotions like this…", stated Vert.

"Preferably without the initial violence.", added Blanc.

"Of course."

Noire, realizing that this precious moment was being observed by everyone, separated from Uni. She looked at Neptune, and flicked a tail of her hair.

"Fine, I guess I'll come along with you on… whatever it is that you're all doing."

"Score! Good to have ya!"

Neptune turned to the rest of the group.

"Now that we have everyone, we can commence the operation!"

"Which is what, exactly?", asked Vert.

"We're going to the beach, of course!"

"Seriously? Was it that hard to say?", asked Blanc.

"Well, we couldn't just jump straight into it without some sort of build-up, ya know?"

"Sis… you could've simply said that we're going to the beach…"

"Nevermind the small stuff! Off we go!"

After a few minutes, all the CPU's were outside the Lastation Basilicom. They transformed once more, and flew off towards Planeptune.

"And it had to be at your nation?", asked Black Heart, as they were flying.

"Of course.", answered Purple Heart.

"You know, Leanbox has great beaches…", started Vert.

"It'll be fine, Vert. I've got this all planned out."

And so they continued to fly to Planeptune.

* * *

**At a beach in Planeptune, a few minutes later:**

"At last! The time has come! It's been a couple thousand words, but we're finally here!", declared Neptune.

"I hope this is worth it.", said Noire. "And not just your usual shenanigans."

"Well it's gonna be fun, so… maybe?"

The group of CPU's had landed at an empty part of the beach. It was a private part of a vast beach, so they had free reign in it. It also helped that most people were at work.

"I do not see anything that has been set up.", observed Vert, taking in the surrounding area. "Have you really thought this all through?"

"Trust me, my improv- I mean impressive plan will blow you all away!"

"So, like, is there food?!", asked Ram. "I'm already starving!"

"There is… not! YET! We can, uh… get later! Yeah!"

"What a pain.", mumbled Blanc.

"But worry not, for I, Neptune, have some stuff to use and peruse!"

Neptune summoned an interface that held all the items in her inventory. She worked at scrolling through it for a few seconds, and eventually stopped.

"Aha!"

She tapped on the interface, and held out her hands. In her right hand she held a top hat with a purple ribbon lining it, and in the other she held a few small pieces of paper and a blue pen.

"I-Is Neptune going to show us… a magic trick?", asked Rom, with slight intrigue.

"Who knows.", answered Vert, Blanc and Noire simultaneously.

"It's a lot simpler than that, Rommy-roo. Let me explain… So, I'm putting the Candidate's names in here, on these pieces of paper. Us older, wiser peeps will take turns picking out names. Whoever we choose, we're stuck with for the rest of this vacation."

"I don't think this counts as a "vacation", sis…", said Nepgear.

"Let's just go with it. It'll be easier, that way.", spoke Uni.

"That's the spirit!"

Neptune spun around, and wrote down the four different CPU Candidate's names on the paper. She spun back around and held the pieces in front of her.

"Looky! So, I'll put them in while you guys aren't looking. So turn around, please."

"So demanding…", commented Vert, already turned around.

When the other seven Goddesses turned around, Neptune shuffled the pieces of paper. She shuffled them again, and then again, each in a separate way. She closed her eyes, placed them in different parts of the hat, and then shook the hat around.

"Done! You guys can turn back round now."

They did, and walked up to the hat in Neptune's hands. Neptune handed it to Nepgear, who was going to be the hat-bearer. Neptune took a stance besides her.

"Come one, come all! Come on down to the great Nepsters not-so-magical hat trick!"

She spun around while moving in front of the hat.

"Starting with me!"

She placed her hand inside and rummaged around for a bit. The other CPU's stood around her, observing her face.

She looked like she was about to pull one out, then continued rummaging.

"Can you just pull a name out already?", asked Blanc.

At her request, Neptune shot her hand up into the air, clutching a piece of paper.

"Who is lucky number one, I wonder…", said Neptune, lowering it down.

"It isssss… Ram!", she declared, pointing at the pink dressed Candidate.

Blanc lowered herself down to Ram's level, and placed both her hands on her little sister's shoulders.

"Don't be influenced by Neptune, Ram. Stay strong.", Blanc said, patting her shoulders.

"You got it!", affirmed Ram, saluting Blanc.

"Oh, come ooooon! I'm not that bad, I swear!"

Blanc stood up, and walked to Nepgear.

"Not really convincing, coming from you.", said Blanc, while putting her hand inside the hat.

She removed her hand, and held her palm out. She looked up at the hat-bearer.

"I'm with you, Nepgear."

"O-Okay… I look forward to it…"

"Yeah."

Blanc stood aside, letting the next participant take their turn.

"You can go, Vert. I don't mind.", offered Noire.

"If you insist."

Vert stuck her hand inside, and quickly pulled one out.

"Hmhmm… I'm with Uni.", said Vert, turning to face her new partner.

Uni blinked at her a few times. "Y-Yeah…" She hoped Vert wouldn't do anything weird.

Noire looked at Vert, and then at Rom.

She walked over to Rom, and lowered down.

"Guess that means I'm with you, huh?"

"Y-Yes…"

Noire lowered her voice to a whisper. "You don't have to be nervous. I'm not as weird as the other three."

Rom smiled, and nodded at her.

Neptune spoke. "Now, for the sake of time saving, we'll skip over how we all get ready! Epic transition time, yay!"

* * *

**One clothes changing, item getting, and mentally preparing moment later:**

"Really discreet there, Neptune.", stated Blanc.

"Blegh, I'm sure it's fine."

Everyone was in appropriate attire, being their usual swimming costumes and bikinis.

"Although, I'm sure most would have enjoyed that scene…", mumbled Vert.

"So what's first?", asked Noire, placing a hand on her hip.

"First, a good ol' three legged race!"

"How exciting!", declared Ram.

"Exciting…", mumbled Rom.

Neptune ran a distance away, and placed the top hat on the sand. She ran back, holding four pieces of fabric.

"You girls know the drill. First group to reach the finish hat wins.", said Neptune, holding out the fabric.

Each group took one, and they bound themselves to their partner. As a general rule, the bigger sisters were on the right, with the little sisters on their left.

Closest to the water was Neptune and Ram. Following them was Blanc and Nepgear, Vert and Uni, and finally, Noire and Rom.

"Ya ready, Ram?"

"Yup! All ready!"

"Cool!"

Neptune and Ram high fived.

"Don't worry, Nepgear, it'll be fine."

"I-I hope so… I don't want to trip us up… it'll be embarrassing."

"Do you want to follow my lead, then?"

"I-I think that's a good idea…"

Blanc and Nepgear stood beside each other, waiting.

"Ah, Uni?"

"Y-Yes, Vert?"

"Maybe… just so that we're more in sync… we should also hold hands?"

"W-Wha?!"

"For the sake of us being in tune, of course."

"D-Do we have to?"

"Yes! The rules demand it!"

After a few seconds, and Vert's demands, Uni reluctantly complied, looking away, with Vert teasing her some more.

Noire and Rom stood there, not really knowing what to say to each other.

"J-Just do your best, alright?"

"I-I'll try…"

"Ummm… maybe focus on matching up our pace. I'll direct us."

Rom nodded a few times at Noire.

"Are we all ready?", shouted Neptune.

Everyone let out confirmation, and took their stances.

"Alright! On your marks… get set…"

A moment of silence.

"GO!"

Neptune fell flat on her face, straight out the gate. Ram was partially put off balance by this, but retained her footing. She patted Neptune on the back, who quickly got up, and started to run with her partner, being mostly in sync.

Blanc and Nepgear had no problems moving, just that Nepgear had a few issues matching Blanc's pace. They almost fumbled a few times, but managed a steady pace, and were performing well.

Vert and Uni were performing the most competently out of the competitors. Vert, having taken Uni by the hand, ran forward with long strides. At first, Uni was practically being pulled along, but found that it was easier to match Vert's pacing, since it was rhythmatic, and had longer gaps between feeling the ground. They had taken to skipping towards the finish hat.

Noire and Rom had no real issues, although they weren't exactly the fastest at first. Noire kept her gaze forward, and lowered her stance in an attempt to make things easier for Rom. In a few moments, they increased speed.

Vert and Uni reached the top hat first.

"Yay! Now wasn't that fun, Uni?", asked Vert.

"I-I guess it was a little…"

"You see!", said Vert, picking Uni up and twirling her around, much to Uni, and Noire's, displeasure.

In second place, Blanc and Nepgear.

"Dammit…", mumbled Blanc.

"I-It can't be helped, Blanc. It was my fault, for not matching you…"

"Don't blame yourself, Nepgear. You did fine."

"T-Thanks…"

After them, Noire and Rom.

"We're third…", mumbled Rom.

"Yeah. It's a shame, but whatever."

"Y-You're not upset..?"

"Why would I be? It's just a game. As long as you had fun, it's all fine."

"I… I did!", said Rom, smiling at Noire.

"I'm glad."

And lastly, Neptune and Ram.

"Ahhh, Neppit! We're the last of the bunch!", said Neptune.

"It's 'cus you fell on your face right at the start!"

"I know! I'm soooorryyy!"

"It was funny to see."

"Is that a compliment, or..?"

"I had fun!"

"Yeah…"

Neptune turned to the rest of the group, and declared that they could remove their pieces of fabric. They all did, and kept looking at Neptune.

"Neeeeext!", said Ram.

"…Is the water battles!", finished Neptune.

"Water battles?", inquired Uni.

"Yip! Each group has one member climb on the other member's shoulders, and the objective is to push the other groups over, and be the last team standing, to nail that EPIC Victory Royale! Of course, this will all take place in the water.", explained Neptune.

"Hmmm, I understand. Then we should get to it, no?", asked Vert.

"I have a bad feeling about this…", mumbled Blanc.

The group of Goddesses all walked into the water.

"…Cold…", said Rom.

"Don't worry, Rom. I'll make sure you don't fall in.", declared Noire.

Each group set up their stances. As another general rule, the older sisters had to be the ones in the water, while the younger sisters were on their shoulders.

As such, Ram was on Neptune's shoulders, Nepgear was on Blanc's shoulders, Uni was on Vert's shoulders, and Rom was on Noire's shoulders.

Neptune and Blanc's groups stood next to each other, before they started the battle.

"…I knew it.", said Blanc, in an unamused voice.

"M-Maybe I should've thought this through more…", added Neptune.

They were quite short, and both Noire and Vert were not. As such, Neptune and Blanc were at a lower level than the other two, and had less body above the water.

It also didn't help that Nepgear was taller than Blanc.

"I-It's hard to keep my balance… Are you alright, Blanc?", asked Nepgear.

"…Yeah. Just focus on that balance part. I can hold you up just fine.", replied Blanc, straining herself to stay upright. It wasn't because she couldn't hold Nepgear up, it was because her balance was significantly offput.

"…And, go!", declared Neptune.

Ram instantly pushed at Nepgear, causing her to lose balance.

"Ahhh!", screamed Nepgear.

With a splash, Nepgear was in the water, and Blanc was floating, looking up at the sky with half-lidded eyes.

"…Of course.", she mumbled.

"T-That wasn't fair, you two! You started so suddenly, I wasn't prepared!", said Nepgear.

"Ya snooze ya lose!", teased Ram, sticking her tongue out.

"Sorry, Nep Jr. Such is the way of life…", said Neptune, attempting to sound wise.

"Indeed."

Vert had maneuvered towards Neptune and Ram while they were facing away, giving Uni a large opportunity to strike.

With two quick pushes, Uni made Ram fall forward, causing Neptune to fall face first into the water.

"Heeeeey! No faaaaaair!", declared Neptune.

"Such is the way of life…", said Vert, imitating Neptune.

"You weren't paying attention, Neptune! Dumby head!", said Ram, repeatedly hitting Neptune with her hands.

In the meantime, Vert had turned to face her last opponent.

They were a small distance away.

Neptune, Ram, Blanc and Nepgear each swam together, taking their positions in the water, observing the stare down.

"This is like in those old movies…", started Uni.

"…Something about the Wild West, or whatever.", finished Noire.

A breeze moved past them, and a piece of seaweed floated across the water.

"There goes the tumble-seaweed…", commented Uni.

"Prepare yourself, Uni. You did well to push over Neptune and Ram, but this time, our opponent is ready for us."

"Y-Yeah… I'm ready."

"Good. Have faith."

Vert started wading through the water, towards Noire and Ram.

Noire observed the situation.

Vert had a few inches on her, so she was at a height disadvantage. This was further reinforced by how Uni was much taller than Rom.

It wasn't the best situation.

"…I don't wanna fall in…", said Rom, in a slightly worried tone.

Noire had to step up and encourage Rom.

"Rom? Are you ready?"

"I…I don't know…"

"You are ready. I'm telling you now, you're ready, and we're going to win."

"Hmmmmm… I don't know…"

"Listen. See how they're taller than us? We're going to use that against them."

"H-How?"

"They will have a harder time keeping their balance. Since we're both smaller, I can keep you balanced on my shoulders easier."

"…Mmm."

"Stay calm, and try to pull them down while they're moving. If they're standing still, it'll be harder. Use their movements against them."

"Y-Yes…"

"Don't worry about keeping your balance. I'll keep you upright. We'll win, you'll see."

"…Yeah!"

Noire knew that she was a very confident person, and she knew that she could make others feel so, as well, simply by them witnessing her own confidence. This is what she was trying to do for Rom, and it seemed to be working.

"And I did say that I wouldn't let you fall in. You said it was cold, remember?"

"Yes…"

"So, are you ready?"

"Yes!"

"Good."

Noire started wading towards Vert and Uni.

They were both moving at the same pace, and would meet in front of the onlookers.

"This is like some fated showdown, between rivals! Oh, and sister against sister! How dramatic!", said Neptune, raising her hands to her face.

"Like in the movies!", continued Ram.

"Oy, don't start copying Neptune. I don't need a slacker for a sister.", said Blanc.

"Good luck Uni! Good luck Rom!", called out Nepgear.

The two remaining pairs were close to each other.

"Oh? You're approaching me?", asked Vert.

"I'm not continuing with this reference, Vert.", stated Noire.

"T-That's not your line, Noire! Come on, entertain it? Pleeeeease?", pleaded Vert.

"Ugh… "I can't beat the…"

Blanc suddenly coughed.

""…out of you without getting closer"… Vert, why-?"

"Oh-ho… then come as close as you'd like…"

"Sis, what's going on?", asked Uni, with a confused face.

"D-Don't worry about it, Uni! It's nothing!", answered Noire.

"I had no idea you were a fan, Noire…", teased Vert.

"S-Shut up! Get ready, Rom!"

"Mmm!"

The two groups were right next to each other.

Noire looked up at her sister.

Uni looked down at her sister.

"…No hard feelings?", asked Uni.

"No hard feelings.", answered Noire, with a determined look.

Uni instantly went to push at Rom. It was so quick that they hardly had time to react.

It landed, and Rom started to fall backwards.

Noire compensated by moving backwards, and then forwards, regaining her balance.

Vert moved towards her opponents in the meantime, and Uni readied up.

Uni went to push Rom again, but Noire moved to the side. As Vert moved past them, Rom pushed at Uni, causing them to stumble forward in the water. They remained standing.

Vert turned around, and charged once again. She stopped just in front of Noire.

Uni pushed at Rom, with Rom trying to grab her hands and pull her forward. Uni reacted fast enough, and instead she was the one holding onto Rom's hands. She pushed forward, and Rom lost balance.

Noire tightened her grip on Rom's legs, but it wouldn't be enough. She had to improvise, while Uni was looming over her.

She would soon push Rom again.

In a quick movement, Noire anchored her back foot into the sand, and put her other foot forward. This caused her head to just stick up above the water.

Vert and Uni had not anticipated this, and so were a little caught off guard.

Rom was pulled forward, and would fall forward if Noire didn't time this right.

With great timing, Noire pushed off her front leg, causing her to partially jump out of the water. She brought her back leg forward as she rose, splashing water at her opponents. They recoiled at the sudden burst of movement.

Rom capitalized on this by pushing at Uni's shoulders. Thanks to Noire, they were above Vert and Uni, and an opening was visible.

Uni fell back into the water, dragging Vert down with her.

Noire landed, and kept her footing. She gave a flick of her hair, and a confident smirk.

"I told you."

Vert and Uni had recovered, and were standing up.

"I… did not expect that, Noire. Well done.", praised Vert.

"Hmph, of course."

"That was… cool, sis!", added Uni.

"T-Thanks, Uni…", replied Noire, somewhat bashfully.

"Oh, how these sisters act!", said Vert, in a happy tone.

Noire looked up, and saw that Rom was smiling while looking forward.

"…Did you have fun?", questioned Noire.

"Y-Yes! We won! We won!"

"We did. Now, let's make our way back to land. Shall we?"

They all started wading through the water, towards the beach.

"What a pose, Noire!", started Neptune. "That form, that style, and that pose! Ten outta ten!"

"T-Thanks, I guess…"

"You were so cool, Rom! You were like, BAM, and you pushed them over!", said Ram.

"Hehehe… Yay…"

Once they were all on land, they readied themselves for the next event.

"What's next, sis?", asked Nepgear.

"Obligatory sand thing making competition! Go!"

"Right now?!"

"Yup!"

They all immediately set to work.

Neptune and Ram were making quick work of their creation, much more so than the other groups.

"What's the time limit?", asked Blanc.

"I dunno. Just hurry up!", answered Neptune.

"Great planning, as always."

In a few minutes time, they had all finished.

Noire and Ram had made a few miniature sculptures of sea life. Some starfish, a few whales, and some normal fish.

"It goes with the theme, okay?", stated Noire.

Vert and Uni had made replicas of their weapons. Vert worked at her spear, while Uni worked at her gun. They crossed over each other, as a sort of coat of arms.

"You need to appreciate the finer details on the weaponry.", said Vert, satisfied.

Blanc and Nepgear had gone for a more traditional sand castle. It was large, and had a wide circumference, a moat, watch towers on each corner, and more.

"…It was fun.", said Blanc.

Neptune and Ram had made a large dogoo, it being taller than Vert.

"I mean, it's massive! Surely that's bonus points.", spoke Neptune.

"Well I think that, since ours fit the theme more, it's clear that it wins.", said Noire.

"Ours had the most amount of detail, so I do say that ours is the winner.", countered Vert.

"…Everyone thinks of sand castles when they're at the beach. Ours won.", added Blanc.

"Ummm... It's a dogoo?", spoke Neptune.

They continued to bicker amongst themselves for a few seconds, when Nepgear and Uni stepped in.

"Everyone is a winner, in their own regard!", said Nepgear, trying to stop the argument.

"Yeah, we all did what we thought was good. It's kinda perspective based.", added Uni.

The CPU's were all about to object, but Uni continued.

"Besides, we have other things to do."

Neptune nodded at this. "This is true! We're wasting time! The sun's almost set. Not quite there yet, but not high in the sky. It's, like, in between setting and midday. It's-"

"We get it, Neptune.", interrupted Blanc.

"What's next?", asked Vert.

"I'm… all outta ideas! We can chillax for a bit, before we head out."

Everyone agreed with this, and nodded their approval.

"…You're all coming back to my place, by the way."

"Who said?", questioned Noire.

"I did! Or… do you not want to stay over? Wanna go home, while everyone else is at my place, having fuuuuuun?", questioned Neptune.

"I-I didn't say that I wouldn't stay, geez. I was just asking…"

"Cool. So I take it you're all coming?"

They all looked amongst themselves.

"I do not see why not. I'll stay.", answered Vert.

"Rom and Ram did want to go out, so I don't see the harm in it. We'll stay.", said Blanc.

"And obviously, Uni is staying too.", finished Noire.

"Coolio! So yeah, free reign to do what you want for the next… few hours, I guess. And you have to stay with your partners."

"I don't mind…", said Nepgear.

"Then off we go! Time skipping, general conversation-ing and interaction-ing, away!"

Over the course of the next couple of hours, that's all that the Goddesses really did. They enjoyed their time together, and spoke about their Summer. About Vert's conventions and experimenting, about Blanc's many recent video game releases, and of Noire's issue with the backlash to certain decisions.

The younger sisters had taken to swimming in the ocean. It wasn't very deep, but it was clear. They could sometimes spot small schools of fish darting about.

At some point, Neptune had summoned a few random ingredients from her inventory. When questioned about why she had so many on hand, she said that it was her "completionist nature." Nevertheless, she had concocted a few drinks and edible substances. Not all of them were pleasant, but everyone had their share.

It was late afternoon, and the sun was casting an orange hue across the land.

Blanc and Nepgear were sitting in the shade, relaxing. Blanc found that the sun had tired her out, and Nepgear had joined her for a rest.

Vert and Uni were walking along the beach, pointing out any shells or small creatures that scurried across the sand. There were small holes dotting the sand, and Vert had explained to Uni that some crabs would burrow into these holes for shelter. A few times, they would even catch said crabs in the act.

Noire and Rom had sat down on the sand, looking out at the sunset.

"This is nice.", said Noire.

"…D-Do you go out to the beach often?", asked Rom.

"Not really. Relaxing around like this once in a while is definitely a change of pace, but I'm not complaining."

"N-Neptune teases you a lot about not relaxing…"

"Yeah, among other things."

"Like about not… spending much time with others?"

"…Yes. That seems to come up a lot."

"…But it looked like you liked today. W-We had fun with everyone else…"

Noire smiled out at the orange sky, and then at Rom.

"Yeah… we did."

They continued to look out at the sunset.

"Gotcha!"

"Boo!"

They were both suddenly ambushed by Neptune and Ram, with the former going for Noire, and the latter going for Rom.

"A-Ack!"

"Eep!"

The ambushers both let out giggles and laughs, rolling about on the sand.

The victims looked on at them, with Noire taking a disappointed face.

"W-What was that for?!", asked Noire.

"It was for the fun of it! We wanted to come talk to you's two's, but we saw the opportunity.", answered Neptune.

"Y-You scared us…", mumbled Rom.

"But you're okay! I would never hurt you, Rom.", said Ram.

While they were all arguing over the surprise attack, Nepgear had walked over to them.

"Hey, sis?"

"Oh! Nep Jr.! My favourite junior! What's up?"

"Nothing, really, just that Blanc asked me to come ask you what time we're leaving. It is getting rather late."

Neptune thought this over for a few seconds, before coming up with an answer.

"Soon. Rom, Ram, can you go fetch Blanc, Vert and Uni, and tell them that we're leaving soon?"

"Sure!", answered Ram.

"Okay…", complied Rom.

They ran off towards their sister, leaving Neptune, Nepgear and Noire.

"Come sit 'ere for a little chat, Nep Jr.", said Neptune, patting the sand on her left.

She complied, and took her seat. Neptune was in the middle, with Noire on her right and Nepgear on her left.

They looked out at the setting sun.

"What'd you guys think of today?", asked Neptune, after a few moments of silence.

"I enjoyed myself. I'm glad we all got together like this, sis.", answered Nepgear.

"That's good to hear. I wanted everyone to gather, so I'm happy that you enjoyed yourself.", replied Neptune. "And what about you, Noire?"

"Y-Yeah, it was… enjoyable. It helped relieve some of that stress I told you about earlier, so… thanks.", answered Noire.

"Honestly thought you were gonna kill me back there.", teased Neptune.

"D-Don't joke about that! I'm not THAT violent, okay?!"

"Hmmm… I dunno…"

"What?!"

"I'm pulling your legs, don't worry. I'm glad you enjoyed it."

They became silent again. Neptune looked to her left, and spotted Rom and Ram running off towards Vert and Uni, with Blanc in tow.

"It's good to treasure moments like these.", said Neptune.

Both Noire and Nepgear looked at Neptune with quizzical expressions.

"Sis? What do you mean?"

Neptune gazed out towards the ocean, and spoke.

"The whole "Summer is ending" thing got me thinking about some feely feels. I wanted to make the most out of our time. That's why I was so sudden with asking all of you peeps."

"It's not like you to be so thoughtful. Guess it really bothered you.", said Noire.

"It did, really. We're immortal. Time passes us by, and we're always the same. I don't want us to skip over life like some long, drawn out cutscene. We must make the most out of what time we're given, even if we know there'll be a bajillion more moments like this."

Noire and Nepgear didn't say anything, and rather stared out at the sea.

"That's… a very wise thing to say, sis.", stated Nepgear.

"Guess the "Autumn Blues" hit you hard?", questioned Noire.

"Yeah. I guess so."

Neptune looked over to her left again, and saw that the rest of the group was walking towards her and her two sitting buddies.

Neptune quickly got up to her feet, and was followed by Nepgear and Noire.

"Welp! Time to leave the beach behind us."

"Yeah."

"I guess."

The group had fully gathered, and everyone transformed.

They all shared a final look out at the setting sun.

They then all started to float upwards, and they turned to face the direction of Planeptower.

And they flew off, leaving the sandy shores behind them.

Onto the next chapter in their lives.

* * *

**Aaaaaand… done! Whew, that took a long time.**

**It was a great deal of fun to write it up! I hope you had fun reading it!**

**So yeah, a few things…**

**With the dice roll? Yeah, I did do that in real life. I left it up to chance, and I think it worked out. I hope you think so, too!**

**With the top hat? No, I didn't actually do that. I don't have a top hat.**

**I tried to put a little spin on the classic "beach scene", by actually doing beach stuff. Most of the time, when it comes to beach stuff, it doesn't really show the characters doing beach activities, besides from, like, a montage of them doing it. So I tried to be descriptive of their activities. Kinda.**

**Now I'm sure you all already know this, the introduction was also not there to just gather the characters. It was to give a brief summary of how the characters Summers have been so far. Just kinda wanted to put it in writing.**

**Ummm… I think that's all?**

**Any reviews and opinions you guys leave are wonderful to see! Truly! Like, how'd you like the characters, or the situation? Anything at all that you want to say is not unnoticed. Promise!**

**But yeah. It's very late now. VERY late. I need sleep. Badly.**

**So yeah!**

**Goodbye for now!**


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